In order to promote the Air Jordan brand shoes, Nike uses the “Jumpman” logo, which looks like Michael Jordan doing a slam dunk mid-air. However, the logo came about from a photo shoot for Life magazine in 1984.
Life had staged Jordan performing a ballet move called the “grand jete”, which imitates him going into the air. However, if you look at the logo and then watch Jordan dunk in real life, you’ll see that the two are very different.
The Famous Tongue Out
Michael Jordan, his father, and grandfather all had something in common and that was sticking their tongue out when they needed to focus.
Jordan’s first basketball coach just so happened to be his own dad. It obviously seemed to work for Jordan very well.
He Was Rejected by Adidas
In today’s world, one cannot imagine a company who wouldn’t want to sponsor Michael Jordan. The Jordan brand is a multibillion-dollar company, all thanks to Nike. Adidas chose to not sponsor Jordan because they were only looking to sponsor athletes who were seven feet tall.
Unfortunately, Jordan missed the mark by half a foot. This would be a decision that Adidas would later regret.
Fined For Wearing His Own Shoes
As we’ve stated previously, Michael Jordan was fiercely loyal to Nike. He was so set on selling Jordan’s that he wore his red and black shoes during his games. According to the NBA dress code, this was a violation and he was fined every time he wore them.
This was pocket change for him, and he willingly paid them each time he was fined. After all, he was one of the top paid athletes in the entire world.
Billion Dollar Brand
Michael Jordan collaborated to start his Air Jordan brand with Nike in 1985. It has become one of the most successful shoe lines there has ever been. So successful in fact that Jordan earns roughly $60 million a year from it.
The brand as a whole is said to be valued at over one billion dollars. Air Jordan has been around for over 30 years and is still popular as ever. Every time Jordan comes out with a new release, fans line up at the doors to get their hands on the new pair.